Re: Re:FWD/RWD

[George Graves <gmgraves@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Saturday, April 19, 2003, at 02:05 PM, alfa-digest wrote:

> Date: Sat, 19 Apr 2003 15:44:22 +0100
> From: "Tim Hancock" <timhancock@domain.elided>
> Subject: Re:FWD/RWD
>
> George Graves comments
>
> <Alfa switched to FWD, because after Fiat took over in the late
> eighties, that is what all of Fiat's chassis were. Alfas became "shared
> platforms" with the Fiat takeover because most Fiat-built Alfas shared
> chassis with Fiats, Lancias, and in the case of the 164, the
> aforementioned two as well as the Saab 9000>
>
> Anyone remember the Alfasud ? A pre-Fiat Alfa chassis, FWD and still 
> regarded
> as one of the best handling cars Alfa ever made despite its fragility.
> Generalisation on these issues should carry a government health 
> warning.
While true, it doesn't alter the fact that FIAT made the decision to go 
FWD on all Alfa products. I doubt seriously if Alfa management would 
have made that same decision left on their own. Of course I could be 
wrong and maybe they would have. I just don't think so.


> Saab are not a good example as Saab have always made it clear that 
> they have a
> deliberate policy of building in a high degree of understeer as they 
> regard it
> as a safety feature. This is a policy decision, not an engineering
> inevitability.
I don't have my original post handy, but I don't remember criticizing 
the Saab 9000 for anything.


> One of my best Alfa experiences was being driven four up in a 164 
> Cloverleaf
> round the Silverstone Club circuit by Caroline Hoy, wife of the then 
> BTCC
> saloon car champion Will Hoy (who sadly passed away recently at too 
> young an
> age) I suspect she was using the extra weight in the back to hang the 
> tail out
> in the Luffield complex, but either way the rest of us in the car had 
> no idea
> you could even attempt to corner a heavy FWD in this fashion. 
> Exciting?  You
> bet!
>
> The same day I drove the Alfa 33 Permanent 4wd round the circuit, and 
> found it
> a rather dull drive compared with the 33 1.7 FWD. It was the lack of 
> traction
> that provided the fun, not a surfeit of it !
>
> Please note I am not saying anything against RWD, just noting some 
> intolerance
> towards FWD which I feel is not always fair.
My new Golf GTI 1.8T is the best handling car I've ever owned, easily 
besting my GTV-6 on almost any road, so I don't doubt you one bit. And 
while being out-cornered, my Alfa is still the more fun of the two cars 
to drive.



> I've never replaced a CV boot yet, and I've owned at least 16 FWD 
> cars. Engine
> mounts I will concede however.
My old '85 VW GTI (230,000 miles and recently "retired") went through 
two full sets of CV joints in the first 50,000 miles, then it quit 
eating them!!??


> Tim Hancock   Boston UK
>
> 164TS
> 164Super
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